University of Richmond Athletics
Spiders Four-Peat as Atlantic 10 Title Favorites
02/12/2026 | Men's Lacrosse
WASHINGTON — Since the inception of Atlantic 10 men's lacrosse, the Spiders have been the preseason favorites to win the league title. That trend continued Thursday as the conference office released its 2026 Men's Lacrosse Preseason Poll and All-Conference teams, with Richmond well represented.
The defending Atlantic 10 champions were picked to finish first for the fourth consecutive year. High Point and Saint Joseph's tied for second, followed by league newcomer Delaware in fourth and UMass in fifth. Hobart (sixth) and St. Bonaventure (seventh) rounded out the preseason poll, which was announced later than usual — three weeks into the season.
Five Spiders also earned Preseason All-Conference honors: attackmen Aidan O'Neil and Lucas Littlejohn, midfielders Joe Sheridan and Jack Pilling, and defenseman Hunter Smith.
The 2026 season marks the program's 13th year, all under the direction of Head Coach Dan Chemotti and Associate Head Coach/Defensive Coordinator Paul Richards. The duo has compiled a 119–67 record, capturing six conference titles and making six NCAA Tournament appearances.
Chemotti, the reigning Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year, guided Richmond to the most successful season in program history in 2025. The Spiders posted a program-record 14–3 overall mark and went a perfect 5–0 in conference play to secure the program's first A-10 regular-season title, along with its second conference tournament championship in three years.
Richmond returns six starters from its 2025 NCAA Quarterfinals team, including attackmen O'Neil, Littlejohn and Jack Ricciardi, midfielder Sheridan, and close defensemen Michael Farrell and Smith. The Spiders also return seven of their top 10 point scorers from a year ago, including four of the top five: Littlejohn (40 goals, 13 assists, 53 points), O'Neil (29 goals, 22 assists, 51 points), Sheridan (30 goals, 10 assists, 40 points) and Gavin Creo (19 goals, 8 assists, 27 points).
Nationally, Richmond earned its highest preseason rankings in program history, coming in at No. 9 in the Inside Lacrosse and USILA polls and No. 10 in USA Lacrosse Magazine — marking the first preseason top-10 ranking for the Spiders.
Richmond also returns the reigning Atlantic 10 Players of the Year in O'Neil (Offensive) and Smith (Defensive).
Now sitting at No. 8 in the national polls, Richmond hosts in-state rival, No. 13 Virginia, Saturday at noon during Red Out Robins.
Men's Lacrosse Preseason All-Conference
ATTACK
Lucas Littlejohn, Richmond
Aidan O'Neil, Richmond
Ben Dutton, Saint Joseph's
MIDFIELD
David Peterkin, Hobart
Jack Pilling, Richmond
Joe Sheridan, Richmond
DEFENSE
Kyle Swanson, Massachusetts
Hunter Smith, Richmond
Liam Quinn, Saint Joseph's
FACE OFF SPECIALIST
Luca Accardo, High Point
LONG STICK MIDFIELDER
Danny Gaalaas, Saint Joseph's
GOALKEEPER
Zack Overend, High Point
Tommy Gross, Saint Joseph's
